Car died while driving and won't start back

[Alexand3r]

Hello all fellow M3 owners.

Maybe not the best reason to write here for the first time but it is, what it is.

Long story short, I have bought my dream car - a late '12 E92 M3 DCT from a salvage auction in the US and imported it in Europe. The car has 69k miles on the clock and is fully stock(at least when I got it).
The car was with a front impact, but it was Run & Drive. It was a repairable salvage.
I repaired most of it and now only the front bumper and bonnet are in the paint shop for respraying. But that is not the point.

In the mean time, waiting for the body parts, I serviced the car - changed the oil, changed the coolant, changed the steering fluid. Because of the whole "rod bearings" story, I decided to put in Mobil1 0W40, because where I live, we have some proper winter usually. While changing the oil I inspected the oil filter for metal particles, also removed all the oil from the oil filter housing and checked in there too - nothing visible. Put in 8.5 liters of oil in the car and the measurement said oil level low(on the minimum mark), then I added the rest 0.5 liters and it continued to say the same thing, but I know this measurement is quite slow, so I think I'm ok on the oil side.

After that, I was very inpatient as you can imagine and I've done some test pulls in the yard, where the car is stored and worked on. before doing this I'm always waiting for the car to get to a operational temperature and only then I go above 3k RPM.

Yesterday however, it was a nice sunny day and I decided to get it out again and do some spirited pulls and launches(not using launch control) with some sideways actions. All was fun and adrenaline rush and smiles, until at some point after a pull in second gear I let of the gas, I start breaking and the car suddenly just turns off the engine and goes into neutral, but dash stays on! The only light I remember seeing, was the Auto Start Stop icon if that matters anyhow. The car is still moving slowly(10-15 mph) while that happens.

I'm using two batteries to start the car, because the positive terminal is busted from the crash. I have installed a small one in the trunk for the electronics and one big one, which I jump the car with under the bonnet. It worked fine that way multiple days. I also have put back together the terminal as much as I can, so that it has some connection.

So I got the bigger battery to the car and tried starting it again, but the only thing I got was that "click" sound from the starter and nothing else. Tried this a few times. Then checked all the cables, but all seemed fine cable wise..

So now the question is - what could it be? I know the worst case scenario and I'm ready for it. I knew the risks when I bought that car but just I don't want to believe still in it, because it was literally out of nowhere. Car was working fine, no strange noises from the engine. Just some rought idle at times, but I'm 99% sure that is from some 02 sensor, because I was getting emissions error one or two times.

I would REALLY appreciate all you help and suggestions, before I put the car in a shop and open the engine, which is final option for me...

I'm attaching a very short five seconds video, of maybe the last pull it made before that thing happened:

[DanMpower]

I would first try turning the crank manually, put a socket and ratchet on the crank and turn. If it turns then the motor isn't seized.

Sounds a lot like some kind of electrical issue considering the jerry-rigged battery setup you got going on. How many miles does the car have anyways?

[bmwfst1]

Usually when a starter just clicks it mean the starter is stuck. Try tapping on the starter with something then try to start car again.

[Alexand3r]

To give you an update, the engine is gone... Tried to turn the crank manually and it isn't moving at all.. So that concludes my ownership of 6 miles.. Damn, I knew what I was going into, but I did not expect it that quickly and out of nowhere.

I'll keep you guys updated when I open the engine eventually, what went wrong!

[Alexand3r]

Summoning a thread from the dead.

I just now managed to do some work with the old engine. Started taking it apart and I was expecting the moment I lower the oil pan, to see some bearings and metal shavings in it. Well, to my surprise, that was not the case. The rods and the whole crankshaft looks immaculate from a first sight. Because the crank couldn't move an inch, I was able to remove only two bearings from two rods. they look quite decent to my opinion. Now because I can't rotate the crank I will remove the next part from the engine, that holds the crank and the main bearings and see if that is the case, if not, I have to remove the heads too. I'll keep you posted. For now, here are some pictures.

[bvrider1]

Would love to hear what happened to the old motor. Looks like you have a solid plan to get things going again.

Originally Posted by Alexand3r

To give you an update, the engine is gone... Tried to turn the crank manually and it isn't moving at all.. So that concludes my ownership of 6 miles.. Damn, I knew what I was going into, but I did not expect it that quickly and out of nowhere.

I'll keep you guys updated when I open the engine eventually, what went wrong!

[mubarak]

69000 miles ,,,shit.
Following.

Thank you.

[NeverL8]

Curious how the mains will look when you get to them

[Ajolives]

I'm curious now, too, as this post just got revived, haha.

[NeverL8]

Originally Posted by Ajolives

I'm curious now, too, as this post just got revived, haha.

OP said he will disassemble the engine further in couple weeks...so I bumped it up

[TX]

best engine stand......ever...

[Master_V8]

Any updates?

[Eja144]

My money's on a seized main bearing. Seems like those tend to go very suddenly and without warning.

[Alexand3r]

Sorry for keeping you in the dark for so long, but a lot of other things on my head.. As many of you suspected, including me, it is the front main bearing. it was literally welded to the crank. The car was running 0W40 Mobil oil, just stating it, without knowing if it has any connection to the case. Feel free to comment.

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[bvrider1]

Thank you for the update. Do you plan on running the same weight oil?

[Alexand3r]

Originally Posted by bvrider1

Thank you for the update. Do you plan on running the same weight oil?

No.. In the new engine I went trough 10W60 Castrol, then 10W60 Liqui Moly and now I'm running 5W50 and most probably will keep running it in the future, as the car feels good with it.

[roastbeef]

clean up all that drama you have going on and maybe the car will start again. too much mickey mouse stuff going on.

[irokwrx]

Originally Posted by Alexand3r

No.. In the new engine I went trough 10W60 Castrol, then 10W60 Liqui Moly and now I'm running 5W50 and most probably will keep running it in the future, as the car feels good with it.

Just run the 10w60 and tinker with something else. Please!

[TX]

What causes this? Does the crank flex at this end under load?

[InnerBlueSkies]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

clean up all that drama you have going on and maybe the car will start again. too much mickey mouse stuff going on.

lol